Raymond Reddington

Raymond Reddington is a main character in the NBC series, The Blacklist. Reddington is a criminal mastermind, making it to #4 on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, who suddenly turns himself in after 20 years of evading the FBI.

Background

Raymond Reddington attended the United States Naval Academy, graduating top of his class at the age of 24, and was being groomed for Admiral when he disappeared while coming home to visit his family for Christmas in 1990. 4 years later, he resurfaced, selling classified documents to the enemy. Over the next 20 years he built a network of contacts: spies, thieves, smugglers, drug dealers, people smugglers, human traffickers, arms dealers, forgers, hackers, mercenaries, and assassins. During this time, U.S. assets located in Moscow, Islamabad, and Beijing were compromised. He infiltrated the private sector, and there was no industry that was out of his reach, including technology, shipping, communications, security/military contracting and pharmaceuticals. Eventually he went from just selling secrets to also starting wars, toppling governments, and influencing geo-politics to suit his needs. He became known as "The Concierge of Crime" due to his ability to arrange deals between the various black market factions. He was ranked fourth on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list as an "arrest on sight" fugitive, as shown when he surrendered to the FBI in "Pilot".

Season 1

===“[[Pilot ]]”=== Outside the FBI building in Washington DC, he meets a man who gives him a briefcase and then walks into the building, asks for Assistant Director Harold Cooper and tells them his own name. He then walks to the seal set in the floor, removes his coat, jacket and hat, then waits while the alarms sound and he is taken into custody.

The FBI case agent states they've confirmed he's Raymond Reddington by matching fingerprints and tattoos, as well as his knowledge about a former FBI attempt to kill him.

He is taken to a secret holding site where he says nothing until a chip is implanted in his shoulder, then he says that he will only talk to Elizabeth Keen.

When she arrives he then relates part of her history, including some private details, and tells her that Beth Ryker, the daughter of General Daniel Ryker, will be kidnapped by a man named Ranko Zamani.

After Beth's kidnapping, he is taken to the operations room where he identifies other members of the kidnapping gang; including The Banker, The Innkeeper, and The Chemist. He has Liz logically work through the clues and figure out what is going on; to think like a criminal. (Zamani's story sounds very similar to the Farmer's story Red relates in "The Stewmaker".)

For a further relaxation of his conditions of imprisonment he offers to help find The Chemist. The relaxation of conditions are no handcuffs and he will reside in an hotel of his choosing.

In his second meeting with Liz, he inquires about the scar on her hand. She tells him she received the scar in a fire when she was 14.

While at the hotel he is stabbed in the neck by Liz, who believes (correctly) that he had Tom Keen attacked by Zamani.

Once he has had treatment at the hospital, he escapes and meets Zamani, and plants his tracking chip on him. When Liz realizes that the bomb is to be detonated at the zoo, he sends a Ukrainian to defuse the bomb and waits to be recaptured.

While comforting the child Beth, Liz says her father gave her the scar on her hand when she was about Beth's age (around 4), contradicting what she told Red.

At a meeting with Cooper and Donald Ressler he states his conditions for giving the FBI the names of major criminals, which he dubs The Blacklist. His conditions are: He never sleeps in the same place more than two nights; He wants his own security detail; He will negotiate his own immunity deal and the he will only speak with Elizabeth.

===“[[The Freelancer ]]”=== Red is now being held in an FBI secret prison which looks like an oil tanker. He is taken to Washington for a polygraph test, during which he states that a disaster will occur at the Decatur industrial park, that day at 11 A.M.

After the train crash, Red is brought to the FBI operations room, where he reveals the the crash was caused by an individual known as The Freelancer who disguises his assassinations as accidents. Red estimates that he has killed over 3,000 innocent civilians and compares his scale of carnage to terrorist groups and governments. Red says that he cannot contact the Freelancer directly, but he does have an intermediary in Montreal.

In Montreal, Red and Elizabeth Keen talk in a restaurant until Red leaves the table and proceeds to exit the restaurant through the back door and wait in the RCMP/FBI control vehicle for the flustered agents. He reveals that his contact was the coat-check guy and that the intended target is Floriana Campo, a noted campaigner against human trafficking.

When the FBI realize that the only person who can identify the Freelancer is Red, his deal is signed, Dembe and Luli Zeng form his security detail. Meera Malik, a CIA agent, is added by Diane Fowler.

At the function Red identifies the Freelancer and the agents give chase. Taking advantage of the distraction Red heads for Floriana's room. Once there he reveals that he knows her and that she is the head of the Eberhardt Cartel, the largest human trafficking gang in the Eastern Hemisphere and one of the most vicious.

Liz then arrives and Red reveals that the Freelancer has poisoned Floriana and the if she admits her guilt he will give Liz the antidote. Floriana nods to agree to her guilt.

Next day Liz and Red are talking, Liz says that the FBI have checked Floriana's accounts and found that she was the leader of the cartel. She asks what would have occurred if the antidote had worked? Red replies that there was no antidote.

===“[[Wujing ]]”=== Red is playing solo chess in a park when he is approached by a representative of Wujing requesting his assistance in decoding a message. Red explains that his usual contractor is unavailable, but Luli Zeng has details of a replacement and once due diligence is completed they will proceed as normal. Red then tells the representative that he "prefers to play with himself in private," signalling for him to leave.

At his hatter Red meets Elizabeth Keen and explains that she is to pose as a cryptographer, and decode the name of an American agent for the Chinese spy killer Wujing. Liz is not happy with the idea but is eventually persuaded by the FBI to comply.

Red and Liz enter Wujing's bunker and are introduced to Jin Sun, Wujing's new cryptographer. The bunker is shielded and in order to get the information to the FBI, Liz needs to insert her mirroring USB key into Jin Sun's computer, so Red distracts everyone by pointing out one of the FBI surveillance vehicles. Once the message is decoded, but before they can leave, the transmission to the FBI is detected. The source of the contact to the FBI is identified as Jin Sun's computer, so Wujing beats Jin Sun. Jin Sun notices Liz's USB key, but before he can alert anyone, Red shoots him dead, telling Liz that he'll do anything to keep her alive.

Red, Liz, Wujing and the rest of his staff leave the bunker though a hidden exit and drive away. Wujing drops Red and Liz of at a place where Dembe collects them.

As Liz leaves she asks Red, why her? He says that it is because of her father. When she asks if he knew her father, he says that the answer is complicated.

===“[[The Stewmaker ]]”=== Red hears about Liz's upcoming trial, and arranges a meeting to tell her that the defendant, Hector Lorca, has contacted him requesting a new identity. He also says that he has to travel to Haiti.

In Haiti while selling arms he receives a call from Liz updating him on the situation, and tells her to check the bath.

Back in Washington, Red tells the FBI what little he knows about the Stewmaker and suggests they pressure Lorca for information.

After Liz has been kidnapped, Red and Donald Ressler go to a meeting with Lorca, for Red to hand over his new identity and to get information about Liz. Before they enter the meeting Red warns Ressler that he will have to explain why he is accopmanying Red, since he should be attending alone. In the meeting Red tells Lorca that Ressler is an FBI agent. Ressler then tells Lorca that he is the person who arranged for the new identity. Lorca is reluctant to give any information about the Stewmaker, but when Red threatens not to hand over the identity he gives Red his contact information for the Stewmaker.

At The Post Office, Red notices the evidence of dog hair from the motel room and leaves the FBI to their investigation while he pursues his own investigation.

In his limousine with Dembe driving, and Luli Zeng sitting next to him, he speaks to Animal Control and persuades them to release the tracking information on Kornish's dog to him, and they head for the cabin. When they are near the cabin Red tells Dembe to stop at a shop to buy some meat.

Just as Liz is about to be killed, Red knocks out Kornish with a single punch. He then binds Kornish and checks that Liz is alright. Kornish's dog is seen enjoying a raw steak. Red talks to Kornish about a farmer who loses everything, and over time becomes the predator. He then tips Kornish into his vat of chemicals, just before the FBI arrive. He tells Ressler that Liz needs medical attention, and when Meera Malik asks what he is doing there, he replies that she is wearing a pretty blouse. While the FBI are securing the scene and attending to Liz, Red finds an album of Kornish's victims and removes one picture. As Liz is entering the ambulance she calls Red a monster and asks how he lives with himself, he replies that it is by keeping her alive. He gives Liz the album. As the ambulance drives away he tells Ressler that the album contains enough information to put Lorca and several others in prison.

At the end of the episode Red stands on a bridge looking at the picture he took from Kornish's album.

===“[[The Courier ]]”=== Grey informs Red that The Courier will be making a delivery for 20 million dollars shortly and wonders if they should intercept it. Red decides that it would be better to use the FBI as a strike force.

When Liz hears about the job she is initially skeptical, until Red tells her how much the package is worth.

Once the courier is captured and after watching the initial interrogation, Red tells Harold Cooper that he will need a doctor, as he always wondered if the rumours were true. When the FBI discover that the courier is impervious to pain, Red says that he may be able to find his safe house, assuming that the courier is still addicted to opium.

Red identifies the woman that Tommy Phelps took surveillance photographs of, as Laurence Dechambou, a night club owner and information broker.

After the arrest of Dechambou, Red tells Cooper that she was going to be the French version of him, so will tell them nothing. He says that if they release her, he will find the location where she left Seth Nelson. Cooper says to Red "If you screw me over on this..." to which Red interjects "I'll consider it a bonus".

Red meets Dechambou at her club and in return for a flight out of the country she tells Red what he wants to know.

Back at The Post Office with Liz and Dembe, they deduce where Seth is being held and Dembe drives them there.

At the site, Red says that Phelps would have buried the refrigerator containing Seth and finds a patch of clear ground where they should dig.

As Seth is being loaded into the ambulance he has a whispered conversation with Red.

At his current abode, Grey says to Red that he wasted his one question, Red says that he is betting on the long term.

===“[[Gina Zanetakos ]]”=== Red is ensconced in an apparently deserted house where he is negotiating the sale of an Old Master painting. During the negotiation Grey receives a call regarding the situation with Liz and Tom Keen.

Red meets with Liz in front of the White House, where he tells her about corporate terrorist Gina Zanetakos whom he claims is Tom's lover, and who is in the country. He also tells Liz that last time he had contact with Gina, she was using the alias Shubie Hartwell.

When Red next meets Liz he is more interested in Tom's situation than the ongoing investigation. Liz vehemently defends her husband and leaves.

At their next meeting Liz has been tasked with asking Red to find Max Ruddiger and, through him, Gina Zanetakos for the FBI. Red reminisces about Max.

He flies to Germany accompanied by Dembe where meets with Max, who is initially reluctant to help, but Red gets him drunk and offers a Syrian contract so Max tells what he knows. Max does not know the target, just the time of detonation. He calls Gina so that the FBI can trace her.

After the bomb is dealt with, an angry Liz visits Red and tells him that Gina denied knowing Tom and that he can "go to hell". Red does not say anything; he just sighs once she leaves.

===“[[Frederick Barnes ]]”=== Because Elizabeth Keen is not taking his calls due to her belief about his involvement in Tom's troubles, Red calls the tip line to tell Liz he knows who caused the biological attack. Liz and Donald Ressler meet Red at his tailor and he briefs them on Frederick Barnes.

At a meeting with Harold Cooper, Ressler, Liz, and Meera; Red learns that Strontium-90 was used in the bomb's detonator. He says that he has a contact for Strontium-90 and he might be able to use him to get a lead on Barnes. As the contact lives in Cuba, Red says that he will have to fly to meet him. He invites Liz to accompany him, but she refuses.When he enters his car he says to Luli Zeng that he hopes she has good news as it has been a very depressing morning. Luli tells him that something he has been looking for has come on the market. He is pleased and tells her to proceed.

In Cuba, Red meets his contact Manny and when Manny won't divulge the name of the Strontium-90 buyer, he bugs his office and makes an offer for some of the material. As expected, Manny refuses and when Red leaves, calls Barnes. Through the bug Dembe is able to trace the call and Red calls Liz with Barnes' location.

After Liz lets Barnes go, she calls Red. He tells her that he is not a gumball machine and hangs up. When Liz calls back and says she needs his help, he makes her repeat the request before suggesting that he would see the survivor of the courthouse attack as a failure and be certain to visit her.

Outside the Forrester home Red confronts Liz and tells her that if she says the word, he will disappear for ever. When Liz scoffs at the idea, he points out that disappearing was a service he offered to many people. He repeats his offer, but when Liz does not reply, he says that he will see her tomorrow.

He, along with Dembe and Luli take a tour of the house purchased by Luli. Red reminisces about family life in the house before leaving. As they leave an explosion set by Dembe destroys the house.

===“[[General Ludd ]]”=== At a meeting with Harold Cooper, Red says that to assist the FBI in this case he wants access to the FBI's ViCAP (Violent Criminal Apprehension Program) system. Red tells Cooper that he is not a consultant, and he give the FBI cases, not the other way round. With prompting from Liz he agrees, and Red tells them that Nathaniel Wolff is the leader of the anonymous terrorist group, General Ludd. The FBI do not believe him, as CCTV footage of the bombing suspect does not match Wolff's photograph.

Red is meeting with his counterfieter when Liz tracks him down to tell him that they suspect Wolff of having cosmetic surgery. Red wants to talk about Liz's father, but when she is not forthcoming he tells her that Dr. Abraham Maltz is the best cosmetic surgeon for the type of work Wolff would have required.

Red visits Dr. Maltz with Liz, when he initially refuses to divulge Wolff's new name; Liz says that she is an FBI agent and threatens him with a FBI raid. Maltz reveals that Wolff's new name is Bradley Holland. When Maltz queries Red about him working with the FBI, Red says that there was no proof that Liz was an FBI agent, and that he is appalled at how Maltz gave up the information in the face of a few forceful threats.

Red then goes to Nebraska to visit Sam, Liz's adopted father. In their discussion Red learns that Sam has only about 6 weeks to live. Sam tells Red that he would have preferred it if they had said 6 hours. Sam also tells red that he wants to tell Liz something. Red says that he can't allow that. Sam calls Liz to say goodbye, then Red smothers him with a pillow.

Outside, Red sits next to Tom and talks about Liz to him, without revealing who he is. Red tells Tom that Liz is stronger than he thinks and that her father will always be watching over her.

While returning to Washington on board his private plane, Red receives a call from Liz asking about Wolff's escape. Red says that if you the right people, all things are possible and he points out that his plane is not grounded. After he hangs up, Red tells Dembe to inform that pilot that they will be making an unscheduled stop.

At a remote airfield, he and Dembe intercept Wolff. Red states that he wants capitalism to survive and steals the hard drive containing the program for the new 100 dollar banknote design. As they walk away, Red tells Dembe to send Wolff's aircraft tail number to Keen.

At The Post Office, Red is given access to ViCAP and enters the numbers he received from Wujing. The numbers refer to a young woman named Lucy Brooks.

At Mary's house Liz tries to talk to Red about the missing hard drive, but he changes the subject to Sam and gets her to talk about him.

===“[[Anslo Garrick ]]”=== Red is celebrating the completion of a business deal with Luli Zeng, Max Ruddiger and several others in a Munich bierkeller when he sees Donald Ressler approaching. Red intercepts him and explains to the assembled group that Donald is his man in the state department, who he has invited to join them. Ressler says that Elizabeth Keen has been detained and the reason is above his security clearance, but she needs his help in Washington.

When Red, Luli and Dembe enter The Post Office, they are handcuffed and separated. Harold Cooper explains that they have credible intelligence that an assassination attempt will be made on Red's life and he is now in protective custody. When he hears the evidence that Meera Malik has collated, Red immediately states that the information is false, probably sourced through an informant within the team. The purpose is to have him in a known location from where he can be captured or killed. As he is saying this, gunfire is a heard. Red says "They're in". Cooper orders Ressler to take Red to the box. As he is being led away Red tells Cooper to evacuate the building.

On the way to the box, they are attacked by one of Garrick's men who shoots Ressler in the leg, who Ressler manages to shoot before collapsing in pain. Red uncuffs himself and kills their attacker before heading to the box with Ressler. Ressler sets the box to delayed closure while Red collects some medical supplies. They enter the box and it closes as Garrick arrives.

Red starts to treat Ressler's wound while Garrick taunts him from outside, including how Ressler nearly assassinated Red in Brussels based on information supplied by Garrick. Red responds by taunting Garrick about his face where he was shot by Red.

Garrick tires of taunting Red, and has Cooper and the rest of the prisoners brought to them. He threatens to shoot Cooper unless he opens the box, but Red talks him out of it.

Garrick then brings Luli to the box,where he puts a gun to her head and threatens to shoot her unless Red opens the box. When Red is unable to open the box Garrick kills Luli. He then begins the same routine with Dembe, Red realizes that Ressler knows the code, but Ressler has fainted. Dembe and Red recite the Al-Ikhlas, then Garrick puts a gun to Dembe's head and the screen fades to black as a gunshot is heard.

===“[[Anslo Garrick: Conclusion ]]”=== When Anslo Garrick sees Red's reaction to Liz's capture, he lets go of Dembe and puts the gun to Liz's head. Red puts a loaded gun to Ressler's head and forces him to reveal the code to open the box. Red exits the box leaving the gun beside Ressler.

Anslo then implements the next stage of his plan, which is to leave The Post Office through the sewer system taking Red and Liz with him and the mercenary team.

In the ambulance Red gives Liz contact information for Mr. Kaplan, just before she escapes and Anslo's people remove his chip.

Red is taken to another abandoned building where he is suspended by his arms from a beam. Anslo explains to Red that he is to be prepared for questioning. A doctor arrives and injects Red with drugs that will heighten his sensitivity to pain. To check that the drug is working Anslo starts beating Red.

After some time, Red is taken down and sat in a chair. While he is being manhandled Red takes a pair of scissors from the doctor's pocket.

Alan Fitch sits opposite Red and questions him about his arrangement with the FBI, telling him that he is concerned that this may break their deal. Red assures him that their deal is still valid. Fitch tells Red to be careful, as he could have had Red snatched from anywhere, but he chose The Post Office to prove his power. Red reminds Fitch that his information will be distributed at his death, Fitch says that is why Red has been allowed to live for the past 20 years. Fitch then leaves.

A short time later Anslo returns and tells Red that he is going to kill him, and then he is going to go after Liz. Red grunts and Anslo asks if Red is feeling something, Red mumbles and Anslo leans in close. Red then stabs him in the back of the neck with the scissors and says "regret".

Red is next seen in a phone booth calling Liz where he tells her that he'll be away for a while, but if she needs help he'll be there. He also tells her to be careful of her husband. When Liz asks Red if he is her father, he pauses and then says no.

===“[[The Good Samaritan ]]”=== Red looks at the body of Luli Zeng in her coffin and asks Grey to make the arrangements for her ashes.

Red then tracks down, catches and interrogates the remaining watcher, the paramedic who removed his chip and the doctor who injected him. Their bodies are then dumped in various locations about the city.

Red calls Elizabeth Keen at home and suggests that she concentrates on The Good Samaritan's victims instead of trying to profile him.

Red then goes after the banker for the raid and begins by interrogating, then killing, a club owner called Fyodor. He then speaks to Henry Krueger outside his home and demands his records for the raid.

Red has Aram Mojtabai kidnapped and brought to him. He threatens to shoot Aram unless he can untraceably steal 5 million dollars from one specified account and put it into another specified account. When Aram completes the task, Red tells him that he could not be the mole as he would not have accepted payment in a way that could be easily traced to him.

Red returns to Henry's house and this time charms his way inside. shoots Henry in the leg, puts his wife in a closet and learns that the payment was made to Newton Philips.

Red spreads Luli's ashes onto a lake, and then asks Grey why he betrayed him. Grey responds that they threatened his family. Red says he will look after Grey's family and then suffocates him with a plastic bag.

Red goes to Liz's home while Tom Keen is away and tells her that there is a mole in the FBI. He also says that he will give her the next name on The Blacklist.

===“[[The Alchemist ]]”=== Red tells Liz that the next person on The Blacklist is known as the Alchemist, a person who protects the guilty by killing the innocent. He also tells Liz that the Alchemist's next clients are Pytor and Catherine Madrcyzk.

Red meets with a group of hacktivists who have amassed a large amount of shredded government information and tells him to re-assemble the documents in an effort to discover the mole.

When Liz tells Red that the Madrcyzk's have been confirmed killed in an aircraft crash, he tells Liz that he has heard rumors that the Alchemist uses synthetic DNA and false dental records to convince the authorities that his clients have died. He also tells Liz where to find Pytor Madrcyzk.

When Elizabeth Keen calls and tells him about the torn and burnt piece of paper he prompts her to think about laboratory equipment.

When Liz calls about help in locating Trettel after he has kidnapped his wife and child, Red replies that she needs to focus on the wife and daughter. He is then shown a memo signed by Meera Malik indicating she is the mole.

After Liz gives him Eric Trettel's client list, she asks if Red wanted the list to locate a single person.

He is waiting in Meera's appartment when she arrives home. He asks if she knows why he is there, and she replies that he is there to kill her because she is the mole.

===“[[The Cyprus Agency ]]”=== Red meets with Liz in the synagogue he has been laying low in to bring her case on the Cyprus Adoption Agency, an adoption agency he accuses of stealing infants from their birth mothers to give to other parents looking to adopt.

Later, Red enters an abandoned building and encounters a man named Teddy Brimley to was vetting the captured Agent Malik, proclaiming her to be "cleaner that a duck fart." Reddington hires Malik to find who issued the orders for Malik to start a bidding process on improving the site's security.

After DNA tests yield no results, Liz goes to Red for help on the case. Red tells her to check for relatives of the children, reminding Liz that "not every missing child is on the back of a milk carton." Red later takes Liz to the house of a drug dealer named Russell for information on Hydroxipam sales.

Red waits inside Diane Fowler's home after learning from Malik's findings that Fowler was the one who let Anslo Garrick into The Post Office. While dying from being shot by Red, Diane claims to know the truth of what happened to Reddington's family 20 years ago, and asks if he wants to know what happened. Red says yes, but that, if Diane knows the truth, "then someone else does as well." He then shoots and kills Diane and calls Mr. Kaplan to cover up the murder.

===“[[Madeline Pratt ]]”=== Red meets with Madeline Pratt at a bar after she stole from Red's safety deposit box in Istanbul. Pratt tells Red of her desire to Effigy of Atargatis from the Syrian Embassy. Red later brings Pratt to the attention of the task force, sending them on a race against Pratt for the Effigy, which is rumored to contain the names of the "Kungur 6", Soviet agents from the Cold War that are still active and unknown to the US government.

Red takes Liz to hotel room where they will be with Pratt, with Liz under the guise of a thief wanting to steal the Effigy. Red later joins Liz at the embassy, where they are set up by Pratt. After Liz is captured by security, Red talks his way into the room she is held in and knocks out the guard, the two then escaping.

Red meets with Pratt in the city, when the two are captured by an unknown party and held in a makeshift prison, where Red is taken away multiple times by the guards, only to come back to his cell in even poorer shape. This continues until Pratt agrees to give the location of the Effigy and the warheads of the Kungur 6. The information is then handed to Red, revealing that he had set up the capture and prison as a way of tricking Pratt into giving him the information the FBI needed.

While the FBI are sent to find the Effigy, Red finds the locations of the Cold War nuclear warheads that were supposed to be listed in the Effigy. In a meeting with Harold Cooper, Red agrees to give the warheads to the FBI, in return for the Effigy.

When he returns to his temporary house, he finds that Pratt has stolen a painting as revenge.

===“[[The Judge ]]”=== Red meets with The Cowboy in a car, employing his services to find out where Lucy Brooks has been for the past 6 months and what she has been doing in that time.

At the Post Office, Red tells Liz that Hastings' reappearance indicates that a figure known only as "the Judge", a supposed prison myth, is responsible. The Judge responds to prisoners' requests for justice against those in the legal system who wrongfully convicted them.

The Cowboy brings Red what he found in Brooks' apartment; false identities, evidence of several trips abroad, foreign currency, and a USB flash drive. Red notices that Brooks has been to all the places he has been since he surrendered to the FBI.

When Cooper is captured by the Judge for beating Rifkin in order to get his confession, Liz has Red find any information on the Rifkin case, leading Red to visit Admiral Richard Abraham, who is not happy to see Red after his disappearance and treason ruined Abraham's career.

Red is sent to meet with the Judge in her makeshift prison to bring her new information on the Rifkin case, proving that Rifkin was indeed guilty of massacring a village with the Taliban and was rightfully convicted.

Red later meets with Cooper, telling him that "a war is coming" and that he expects Cooper to remember what Red did for him that day when Red depends on his help in the future. He also requests that Cooper aid Abraham in reviving his naval career.

===“[[Mako Tanida ]]”=== While Red awaits results from The Cowboy regarding his investigation into Jolene/Lucy, Red makes a donation to a ballet production. He later provides speculative information to Donald Ressler regarding Mako Tanida, a former suspect Ressler arrested during his 5 year pursuit against Reddington. Red's suspicions were proven correct when another member of Ressler's former task force was murdered. Red later re-assigns the Cowboy to capture Lucy. When hearing of Audrey's death, a sympathetic Reddington provides a lead to a vengeful Ressler towards a residential house serving as an underground hospital. However, he warns Ressler that vengeance requires a high price.

Reddington later hears word of Tanida's escape from captivity, and later kills Tanida, shipping his decapitated head to a mourning Ressler. Red watches the ballet production, imagining a time his daughter was actually the leading star of the same production he funded.

===“[[Ivan ]]”=== Throughout the episode, Red is working at a worktable, renovating a clockwork mechanism.

When Red hears of the NSA analyst being killed in a car crash for the "Skeleton Key", a prototype cyber weapon capable of disabling a nation-state's electronic infrastructure, he initially suspects Ivan, a skilled Russian hacker known for making numerous cyber attacks against the Russian economy. While getting Ivan out of Russia, he discovers that Ivan had nothing to do with the theft of the Skeleton Key, and that someone else is impersonating him. Red uses the opportunity to force Ivan to return the 5 million dollars that Ivan had stolen from his accounts, in addition another 3 million dollars is demanded as interest.

Later, Liz goes to Red for information on Lucy Brooks, demanding to know who she was and why she inserted herself into her life. Red refuses to answer.

After Liz finally discovers the truth of Tom's status as a spy, she goes to Red for comfort. Red plays the song that Liz's father used to sing to her to calm her down with the music box he had been constructing throughout the episode.

===“[[Milton Bobbit ]]”=== In order to give Liz a cover story for her un-official investigation into Tom, he supplies her with information about a recent assassination arranged by Milton Bobbit.

===“[[The Pavlovich Brothers ]]”===

===“[[The Kingmaker ]]”=== After Emil Dusek had been framed by The Kingmaker, he realized that Berlin was increasing it's campaign to destroy him. This causes a contact to reveal that his black market allies are wavering in their support.

Red spends the episode dividing his time between aiding the FBI and attempting to persuade/threaten Alan Fitch into giving him support. After Elizabeth Keen tells him that The Kingmaker was killed, he throws his glass in the fireplace. Later Liz confronts him over the death of her adoptive father, and in keeping with his promise not to lie to her, he tells her what happened.

===“[[Berlin ]]”=== ===“[[Berlin: Conclusion ]]”===

Unanswered Questions

Why surrender to the FBI if he just could have sent them the Blacklist?
1. A: The criminals on the Blacklist have escaped the FBI for years. Red does not trust the FBI to capture them without his help.
2. A: To get closer to Elizabeth while still accomplishing his presently undisclosed purposes. He knew his information was worth the price of temporary capture. The Justice Department would accept his immunity deal. He can always escape if the situation required it. He will remain in constant contact with Elizabeth Keen and she will be forced to work with him. Keen has been committing more non-regulation actions and Red has been training her to adopt a criminal viewpoint.
3. A: Red needs the FBI to protect him until he has enough leverage to confront the adversary mentioned in “The Courier”. The FBI provides protection and gives him strategic depth to maneuver.
4. A: The FBI will weaken his adversary, by having his/her allies arrested. The arrests will weaken Tom Keen’s Berlin based faction and Alan Fitch’s faction.
5. A: In ”Berlin“ and ”Berlin Conclusion“ we meet Berlin, the adversary who has been attacking Red.
6. A: In “The Kingmaker”, Red reveals that his network is under attack and many of his contacts are wavering in their support. Unlike the black market, the FBI can call upon the United States government for more support. Using the FBI sends the message that Red can manipulate an entire federal agency. If Berlin goes to far then the United States Department of Justice will declare war on them. Alan Fitch will have to retreat rather than risk public exposure.
7. A: Using the FBI, as he stated in “The Freelancer”, means Reddington can destroy his enemies without risking his life and the FBI will protect him. He is using Troy's strategy in “Face/Off” where Troy continues to impersonate Archer so the FBI will be credited/blamed for the wave of arrests that target Troy's enemies. This is a lesson in the “Thirty-Six Stratagems”, Chapter 1: Winning Stratagems: Kill with a borrowed sword.
8. A: He gains resources from the FBI which helps him to protect and increase the size of his criminal network. As The Blacklist criminals are removed from the black market, Red will be able to win new clients to his network. Red stated that Eric Trettel was superior to him for supplying faked deaths, therefore by removing Trettel Red becomes the leading supplier of escape routes.
9. A: In addition to being able to read the FBI's files, he can view law enforcement from the inside and learn how they operate. By working with the FBI, he learns how to exploit their areas of political weakness.
What is his interest in Elizabeth?
1. A: As Raymond states to Elizabeth when asked, "Because of your father", though he doesn't elaborate on this. This could be simply due to his obvious friendship with Sam, her adopted father, or it has been left open for the possibility that Raymond actually is Elizabeth's father.
  1. At Raymond's house, he rips off a panel on the wall exposing what is obviously a parent's height chart for their child. The last mark on the wall is at age 3. Elizabeth was adopted by Sam when she was around 4 years old.
  2. Raymond also relives a memory while at his old house of a little dark haired girl playing in his front yard who is obviously his daughter given the height chart he had just revealed.
  3. Throughout many episodes, Raymond makes various comments and offhanded remarks to people regarding Elizabeth or to Elizabeth that could allude to this fact. His conversation with Sam at the hospital is particularly telling in this regard.
  4. Raymond's degree of knowledge of Elizabeth and her life, and his obvious past relationship with her adopted father shows that he hasn't just learned all there is to know about her prior to coming to turn himself in to the FBI. Rather, he has been following her her entire life, and undoubtably knows even more about her life than she does in some extents.
What is his interest in Tom Keen?
1. A: Red knows that Tom is living a double life. He needs to force Liz to confront that reality that Tom is an assassin/spy.
Why did he leave his family?
What happened to his family?
1. A: His decision to destroy his old house and the death of Stanley R. Kornish suggest that Red's family was killed in a vendetta. The fact that Diane Fowler knew what happened implicates Alan Fitch.
Why did he become a criminal? He was being trained for the rank of admiral.
What is the significance of the numbers, 042983 (Megan Boone's DOB), received in "Wujing"?
1. A: They refer to a woman named Lucy Brooks on the FBI's ViCAP (Violent Criminal Apprehension Program) system. ("General Ludd")
Who was the woman whose picture Red removed from The Stewmaker's album?
1. A: It's possible the woman in the Stewmaker's album is Lucy's mother. His search for the information in ViCAP in both "Wujing" and "General Ludd", suggests that Lucy could be possibly Red's daughter.
Is he Elizabeth's father?
1. A: He denies this when asked by her in "Anslo Garrick Conclusion", but the fact he pauses before doing so means he could be lying.
Why did Ranko Zamani and the Freelancer work with him?
1. A: Zamani acted as a decoy in exchange for his chance to detonate the chemical weapon. The Freelancer did not suspect Red was using him to expose Floriana Campo.
Did Gina Zanetakos really work for Red?
1. A: Unlikely, Gina's confession and Tom's identification of Grey resulted in Liz showing rage. Gina was either telling the truth to ensure her deal or Red's adversary ordered her to falsely confess.
2. A: With Grey being revealed as the mole in "The Good Samaritan", it is possible that he or another member of Red's staff hired her.
Will Red return to The Post Office?
Is he looking for redemption? In "The Stewmaker" he tells a story that applies to Berlin.

Raymond Reddington

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Season 1

Unanswered Questions

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